A Ballet DVD For Petite Feet

Petite Feet is a 26-minute DVD that uses engaging and imaginative exercises, games and stories to introduce children to basic ballet positions and vocabulary, as well as general dance and musical concepts.

Liz, a Theatre Studies graduate of Yale and Yaledancers alum, is an early childhood educator who taught ballet, yoga and theater for over nine years in New York City and is now offering classes in LA. She is a strong believer in arts education and in promoting physical well-being and opportunities for artistic expression to people of all backgrounds.

“For years parents have been asking me to put my dance classes on a DVD because their children want to practice every day,” Liz says. So she decided to draw from her experience as a trained actor, as well as a dancer and teacher, to create Petite Feet.

Focusing on the creative potential of dance and its storytelling possibilities, Petite Feet encourages children between the ages of 2-5 to learn fundamental and age-appropriate ballet steps, to build confidence and coordination, and, of course, to have fun.

“Not only does my 3-year-old enjoy this video, it is quite possibly her favorite thing EVER.” – Ariana Smart Truman, mother to George

“It’s a totally relaxed approach to ballet with heavy emphasis on storytelling and imagination — making it a great introduction for little ones.” – Nicole Caccavo Kear, Creator of A Mom Amok

The Giveaway

Liz would like to give away a Petite Feet DVD to THREE Dance Advantage readers.

Featuring original music by Doran Danoff and a colorful set, along with the Story of the Dancing Dolls (written by Liz) and some help from Waldo the Walrus, Petite Feet offers an active alternative to the DVDs in any child’s collection as well as to the programs on children’s television.

This DVD retails for $20. Watch the trailer below:

The Petite Feet giveaway is open worldwide (non-expedited) to those 18 and up and closes at Midnight EST on Thursday, February 16.

How To Enter

This giveaway is closed but discover more about this developmentally appropriate and imaginative DVD for young children at www.petitefeetdance.com!

Sign-in with the Rafflecopter form below using Facebook or your name and email. The widget will reveal multiple ways to earn entries.

The first, commenting on this post, is mandatory for entry (as always).

In this case, you’ll be asked to comment answering the question:

What do you look for in a dance class for your child?

Sign in, and click on Do It and you’ll see.

Upon entering, optional tasks for earning up to 10 additional entries will be revealed.

Complete as many as you like. You can Tweet once every day of the Petite Feet giveaway.

Just make sure you let us know you DID IT in the Rafflecopter form (don’t worry, it’ll save your other entries).

Nichelle Suzanne is a writer specializing in dance and online content. She is also a dance instructor with over 20 years experience teaching in dance studios, community programs, and colleges. She began Dance Advantage in 2008, equipped with a passion for movement education and an intuitive sense that a blog could bring dancers together. As a Houston-based dance writer, Nichelle covers dance performance for Dance Source Houston, Arts+Culture Texas, and other publications. She is a leader in social media within the dance community and has presented on blogging for dance organizations, including Dance/USA. Nichelle provides web consulting and writing services for dancers, dance schools and studios, and those beyond the dance world.

Reader Interactions

Comments

I personally don’t have children but I have been teaching for 12 years and plan to own a dance studio this coming July. In a dance class I love to incorporate as much everyday learning as possible as well as fun.

I would love to make this available to students as a supplement to their classes! I don’t have children but one thing I hear most often is that parents love our children’s teacher because she instills a love of dance that lasts a lifetime.

I look for a fun & inviting atmosphere for my child to dance in, where the other dancers look like they are enjoying themselves through movement and using their imaginations. Tying in familiar characters and themes from books and movies for the younger child is a great way to engage them and spark a love of dance!

I like to see the children’s imaginations captivated and inspired. I look for a class where the children are happy and not even aware they are learning because they are having so much fun! 🙂 I would so love this DVD!! Thank you!

As a teacher of dance for 3-4 yr olds, I feel that a teacher should understand age appropriate movement. Continual use of the children’s imagination and making sure they are having fun are ways they will learn better.

I look for a teacher who keeps the littlest kids engaged and who has a good sense of humor. If the kids are smiling and happy while learning at this age, then I know they will retain more. When the dancers are older and they are self-motivating, when they remember how their teacher put imaginary jewels on their shoes when they were little, or had them pretend to be birds or fairies or butterflies, it will lighten the load of perfecting multiple pirouettes in hours of practice.

I look for the enthusiasim of the instructor and how they break down the little movements into something fun to learn that, by the end of each class, builds into something each child can be proud to have learned while smiling all the way.

As a Teaching Artist I like to LEAP into all my classes! L- Love , I make sure that the children get a sense of how much I love what I am doing and how much I love them! E- Enthusiasim , I make every little detail a BIG deal. Everyone leaves my class with a positive achievement no matter how small. A- Artistic , We are all artistic, sometimes it just needs to be encouraged and nurtured with time. P- Passion , Passionate teaching inspires a passion for the Arts! This is the only way to keep the Arts Alive!

I feel it is very important that while having fun, they learn correct technique from day 1. I do realise it is a challenge for teachers to systematically point to individual errors, but it is so important. I am personally struggling because at 38 of age, many smaller errors in my technique have accumulated over the years to chronic injuries. In trying to resolve those, it turns out that many of those injuries could have been avoided, if only I had been aware of my faults and how to correct them. Eg. pulling up my arches too much lead to chronic plantar fasciitis and shin splints. I do so want to avoid this for my 2 girls.

I have owned my studio for 18 years now. When my children were young and not just dancing with me I would look for a teacher who was creative enthusiastic, and educated on the correct way to teach young children.

In both the classes that I teach and the classes that I sign my daughters up for, I find myself looking for someone (or striving to be) INSPIRATIONAL. An environment that is safe and positive, that nurtures their creativity, while challenging them.

My daughters are 10 & 14 & have been dancing since 3. When I first started looking, I wanted something near by with teachers that had structure & a good value for the money.

Now I would recommend finding a place you are comfortable sitting at. You have to pay attention to not only the owner/teacher staff but the other kids & even the parents. We were at one studio for 2 very long years & the issues were more with the dancers & parents & the teachers not having any control over these kids/parents then anything else.

Plus of course you have to be at a studio that challenges your child. If they are constantly put into classes they are learning nothing in, what is the point. Make sure the studio doesn’t judge on silly things like height, etc (yes that happened one year to me & I see it all the time).

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Who is Nichelle?

Nichelle is the owner and editor of Dance Advantage. Struck by the potential the Internet held for creating community among dancers online, she founded Dance Advantage in 2008 to share information, tips, and advice about dance and dance training. Each month, the site reaches thousands of new and returning readers from all over the world. Thank YOU for reading!Learn more about how and why Nichelle launched DA...